Cycling around Copenhagen is a stark reminder of how brutal things can be in London. As cyclists in the UK capital weave precariously between buses and articulated lorries in a daily battle for survival, their Danish counterparts peddle around their city like kings. This Copenhagen biking paradise takes place on a 1,000 kilometre network of totally separated cycle lanes, some of them next to the main road, often with two lanes, and others standing completely alone. Many have their own traffic lights and, in places, a “green wave” traffic system prioritises cyclists over cars by enabling them to travel through a stream of green lights.

Surveying the scene just outside the City Hall that is home
to the cycle-mad Lord Mayor and was immortalised by detective Sarah Lund’s
frequent visits in crime TV series The Killing, it all seems a bit too good to
be true. In the throng of cyclists, I am the 2,658th to pass by that
morning, according to a roadside monitor, and it’s still only 9am. Parents
cycle by with up to three children in boxes on the front, there are footrests
at traffic lights and laneside bins are tilted at a 45 degree angle for easy
access. Indeed this last accommodation may be a bit too much even for
Copenhagen, says Marie Kastrup, head of the city’s cycling scheme, who suggests
that the five of these angled receptacle currently in place might be
enough.

She says Boris bikes have, on balance, been good for London
because they have got many people cycling again, or for the first time. Many
have liked it but questioned the “infrastructure” creating pressure on
politicians to make improvements that could help to make the culture more
cycle-friendly. She advocates targeting a reasonably large area of
London, possibly around a university, and making it really cycle-friendly. If
the area is large enough, the zone may cover people’s entire journey and they
will enjoy the experience so much they will call for the scheme to be extended
across the city, she argues.

Ultimately, she says cycling needs to become so much part of
the culture that people don’t define themselves as cyclists. “We don’t call
ourselves cyclists, it’s like brushing your teeth. Cycling is not a religion
here, it is just part of life,” she said, of the city where more than a third
workers bike to work.

Jorgen Abildgaard, Copenhagen’s climate director, says cycling
in his city is a far cry from London but believes it is absolutely possible for
the UK capital to emulate it’s success – but that it would take at least a
decade.

He says he’d start by building some Copenhagen-style
dedicated cycle superhighways running from suburbs 10 to 15 miles out right
into the centre to convert people to the cause.

Copenhagen was recently named European Green Capital as it
aims to become the world’s first carbon neutral city, by 2025. Although cycling
will play a crucial part in achieving this goal, the man spearheading the
drive, Mr Abildgaard, says the campaign is far wider.

The city opened the first three of 100 wind turbines planned
for the city in January, one of which is owned by the locals.

The city is also pushing hard into organic food, with 75 per
cent of the city’s 900 public kitchen serving organic food and a target of 90
per cent by next year. It is also not unusual to see locals swimming and
kayaking in the harbour after a mass clean-up of the water.

The city recycles as much of its waste as possible, burning
much of the rest to produce electricity and to heat buildings.